Sonic Reducer

By Michael Henningsen

Twisted SisterStill Hungry(Spitfire Records)

The world needs a 20th anniversary re-release of Twisted Sister's Stay Hungry LP like it needs another four years of George W. Bush. But, at press time, we're stuck with at least one of the above. Aside from a pair of bona fide, albeit criminally overplayed, '80s rock anthems (“We're Not Gonna Take It” and “I Wanna Rock”), the original album was basically a steaming pile of shit. And you just can't polish a turd into anything but a shiny turd. Not even with two “lost” tracks from the original sessions and five new TS songs recorded earlier this year.

Jason DanielloEverything Good(self-released)

While Jason Daniello's post-Naomi output has been consistently good, he has been unable to achieve the magic that was scattered across his former band's two releases. Until now, that is. Everything Good is the culmination of more than half a decade of re-evaluation, woodshedding, experimentation and dedication, and it shows. Daniello, now a bona fide multi-instrumentalist, has evolved into a songwriting force—composer, arranger, producer—and the results pour forth on the album's 10 mesmerizing tracks. With a little help from Ryan Martino and a few others, Daniello has finally set his solo career on the fast track. Killer!

RazorlightUp All Night(Universal)

November's pick for the Libertines of the Month Club is London's Razorlight: the latest band to watch, and the latest to sound like a new Jarvis Cocker project. Cynicism—and overt influences—aside, Up All Night is one fine garage-pop record that's bound for greatness, commercially and critically. Razorlight have stumbled upon the perfect sound—a lucid, new wave-ish hybrid of Television's Marquee Moon and everything Pulp ever recorded. This is what rock is supposed to sound like: drunk on swagger, blitzed on pop sensibility and shitfaced on songwriting chic. You might as well just go buy it right now.